Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Tell the USDA to Keep Agent Orange Corn Off Your Plate

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1002603513Tell the USDA to Keep Agent Orange Corn Off Your PlateBy Food Democracy NowSource: Food Democracy NowTuesday, April 24, 2012The first generation of biotech crops has failed. And failed badly.In the last year alone, new studies have shown that Monsanto’s genetically-engineered Bt insecticide corn has not only created a new breed superbugs tolerant of the plant’s genetically engineered insecticide, but that those Bt toxins have also been found in the blood of 93 percent of woman and 80 percent of fetal blood samples in a Canadian study, despite Monsanto's claims that this was not be possible.At the same time, Monsanto’s Roundup Ready corn and soybeans and their flagship herbicide have been linked to an increase in crop disease and livestock infertility. If that weren't enough, the excessive use of Roundup has led to the rampant rise of superweeds, which have grown tolerant to the herbicide and have infested millions of acres of farmland, threatening the livelihoods of America’s farmers.Now, Dow Chemical is petitioning the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the approval of a new genetically engineered “Agent Orange” corn that tolerates the extremely toxic chemical herbicide 2,4-D, a major component of the Vietnam War era defoliant Agent Orange.Numerous studies have linked exposure to 2,4-D to major health problems that include cancer (particularly non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma), lowered sperm counts, liver disease and Parkinson’s disease. In addition, dozens of peer-reviewed studies have found the use of 2,4-D to contribute to hormone-disrupting activity linked to reproductive problems and thyroid dysfunction.READ MORE: http://www.zcommunications.org/tell-the-usda-to-keep-agent-orange-corn-off-your-plate-by-food-democracy-now